Captain Marvel: Guide Me Home
by tenraitylee
Summary: When not training with Bucky, Will works with Shuri in the lab. He tries to become as skilled as possible in case the protectors of Earth, but most importantly Carol needs some extra help. Even though being in space for weeks, she always returns to him. (Author-created OC!)


**Please read this before continuing: **Carol Danvers having no love interest in Captain Marvel didn't particularly bother me, I don't even think a plus relation like that could fit in due to time limits. Anyway, as she's one of my noble people, the desire to make her loved on a different level has been inevitable in which my imagination would never let me down. Thus, came the idea of a male character who's just as a pilot and a fighter as Carol is. He's portrayed be a slightly-bearded Luke Mitchell who's also treasured by me since a long time. Personally, I believe he and Brie Larson would have a good on-screen chemistry. Although it will probably never happen, they inspired me to write this Captain Marvel version of them which will hopefully be relatable for the possible reader. The following is a brief description of Mitchell's character and the story itself is a kind of insight into his relationship with Carol which is entirely elaborated in my head.

**Character Description**

**Name:** William Tanner (called 'Will' by Carol, Maria and Monica, called 'Tanner' by his co-pilots at the base)

**Portrayed by:** (Australian actor) Luke Mitchell

**Outer characteristics:** tall, slim, dirty blonde hair, neat facial hair

**Inner characteristics:** warm-hearted, benevolent, consistent, a-man-of-few-words

**Affiliation:** Served at the U.S. Army for a few years before joining the Air Force

**Abilities:** streetsmart mechanic / especially fast manoeuvring in air / expertise in hand-to-hand combat / lethal accuracy in aiming

**Warning: **Timeline paralell with the Avengers'!

**Thank you for reading!**

* * *

"Alright, Shuri" said Will well-audibly into the simulation chamber he was standing in.

He set his legs in a straddle to welcome anything which might come his way.

"Don't spare me, give me all that you got!" his fists loosed and tightened again.

"Remember that you asked for it" resounded the teasing voice of the girl all around him.

Her hand swiftly hovered over the holographic controlling panel a few times, snatching icons from one place to another until they assembled in one single diagram. As the sound of a robotic voice counting the remaining seconds went off above his head, Will determinedly steadied his posture once again, keeping his gaze on the shimmering figures of prospective combatants who were about to sporadically appear in the holographic medium.

"Let's show the white boy how we do it" Shuri playfully elbowed T'Challa who was standing beside her with hands clasped behind his back.

He only rewarded her with a slight smile, then turned his serious gaze back towards the chamber. As a man of practicality, he was genuinely interested in the new simulation-based program his sister and the ex-pilot had been working on in the past month. Its database became enlarged with all sorts of species Earth's mightiest heroes has encountered with, from the chitauri to the kree. In case it's effective, the warriors of Wakanda will be able to get acquinted with how these aliens operate during combat, thus, their skills can be developed specifically based on that.

3... 2... 1!

The air left Will's lungs in one single blow as he swiftly swinged forward to strike down the kree warrior which evolved firstly in full figure. The receptor-filled, specially-weaved fight suit he wore allowed him to connect with the attacker as if it would be a real flesh-and-blood enemy. The way it moved had been quite predictable and even though it wielded a battle staff, he could take him down with a couple of well-aimed blows and kicks. The chitauri species which followed was more sluggish, yet harder to get to its weak point.

"Impressive" T'Challa remarked quietly then gave a slight nod towards Will who was fighting so viciously like there wouldn't be tomorrow "His fighting methods have also developed measurably"

"Nah, he's not gonna risk getting his ass whopped because the White Wolf would give him something a thousand times worse"

After attempting to figure it out for a few seconds, T'Challa puckered his brows in question towards his sister.

"It is the 'eyes of disappointment' " chanted Shuri with exaggerated hand gestures.

Grunting and panting, Will replied.

"You do realize I can hear you through my comms, right?"

"Absolutely"

T'Challa's attention dedicated to the simulation chamber got all at once diverted by a motion from the door on his right which opened to the corridor. His serious features softened as he turned towards the arriving one.

"Welcome back, Captain"

"Long time no see" Carol nodded as she made a halt between them and Shuri snapped at her comms just in time to turn them off.

"Yeez, woman, you are sneakier than the bogeyman!"

A little taken aback, Carol squinted at T'Challa.

"I didn't know it's also a thing in Africa"

The king's dark eyes slowly shifted from one point to another as the sheer childhood memory filled him with exhaustion.

"You should have seen the room-sized energy field she created at the age of 10 to keep it out..."

"What happened to your communicator?" Shuri exhaled in disbelief as she took a closer look at the wrecked device on the space soldier's left arm.

"I got carried away in a previous encounter... " Carol shrugged but her eyes actually strayed beyond the glass panel which separated them from the simulation chamber "...and I guess the long flight home didn't do any good for it either"

Shuri's sigh of annoyance didn't even reach her consciousness as it was already occupied with the scene in front of her, more specifically, the man pushing himself beyond his limits in combat. Even this tousled sight of him caused a familiar warmness in her chest, however, an other feeling was maybe more overwhelming at that moment. Carol was overtly amazed by the advancement in his skills on which Bucky's contribution had been palpable.

"You ought to be more careful with your communicator..." Shuri's voice tipped Carol out of her thoughts "...once it's damaged, you aren't able to contact anyone"

Carol gave her a smile.

"I'm sure you already have a better tech up your sleeve for me"

"I've got 6 optional devices, to be exact"

"I'm counting on that" Carol motioned towards the simulation chamber "You managed to bring this to life in such a short period of time?"

When she left 6 weeks ago, there were only verbal references about its possibility. Regarding what a mastermind both Shuri and Will were, she wouldn't have to be surprised, though.

"It's still a prototype running its first test" Shuri remarked with odd modesty.

"Well, it works incredibly" Carol smirked as a sudden flash of determination struck her "But the subject of the test seems to be capable of bearing more. Mind if I run a test of my own on him?"

A fellow grin appeared on Shuri's face.

"I can only drop you in from above"

"Just my style... "

With a loud thump, the last member of the chitauri raid sprawled out on the ground in front of Will when he heard Shuri on the other end of his comms again.

"I'm sending in your last opponent of the day, a non-holographic one this time"

"Alright..." out of breath he was, Will swinged his fists forward joyfully "...but warn them I'm in pretty good shape today"

Hearing the top of the chamber opening above his head, the ex-pilot braced himself once again. Descending in his field of vision, his rival surely arrived in such spectacular fashion a simple landing like this wouldn't particularly required. As the signature glowing ceased, Will could made out that Carol wore a black tank top instead of the upper part of her armour. Even though her steps towards him were flabby, their glances interweaved on an entirely different level and as Will felt his features responding to her smile, he had to remind himself to the real purpose of the situation. Carol stopped a good 2 meters in front of him, tilting her head and giving him a sardonic smile.

"What? I thought you were in your element" she remarked with feigned disappointment.

A wider smile flashed through his face and not giving a chance to any further thought, he leapt to the right and stroke towards her with the edge of his left forearm which Carol easily parried with her palm. She pushed him away, giving her arms enough space to assault him with a swift series of punches which Will kept dodging with the same speed. While receding, his glance lingered on Carol's determined features; he hasn't been on the receiving side of this stance of her yet. Sure, back in the air force days he not once held the punching bag in place on which she took out her anger caused by some cocky male pilot who thought she had nothing to do with the army. In those moments, Will was sure he wouldn't want to swap places with that poor punching bag but here he was now, witnessing this woman's abilities literally firsthand. She was maybe more enhanced by now, however, her determination was blazing with the exact same intensity. With a sudden move, he made a halt and a got a brief hold of her attacking arms but Carol twisted her body, caught his foot and tripped him. His senses being dulled enough already, Will didn't register she was actually yanking him with herself to the ground and in midair, he instinctively grabbed her back from below while his other arm shot out to meet the floor just in a second.

"Damn it..." he hissed under his breath, relieved he was able to catch her in time, however, Carol displayed a different reaction. Her course of action disrupted and landing not carried out as planned, she used her feet to push him off and sprang up.

By the time Will also emerged to his feet, he got stroke with a sudden urge of laughter at the late realization that the fall was intentional, however, he had no time to as a newer wave of attack had to be evaded. Carol was restless in providing an effective sparring time but due to his long-drawn evasive moves and seeming tendency to avoid striking back, she wasn't able to reach him. At the point their bodies got the closest to each other, her tension suddenly lashed out in one well-aimed blow from whose way, to her rapidly escalating horror, Will didn't evade. The punch wasn't an enhanced one, however, Carol had that much awareness of her strenght to know it was hard when it crashed against the man's chest. She froze in her tracks, shock striking her system like lightning. When her gaze sprang to his features, however, she only met a smirk which only added to her disbelief. Will caught the momentary fright in her hazel eyes and utilized it to grab her, lay the edge of his arm on her torso and push her in the air over his shoulder. Carol adeptly landed on her feet, uncertainty still present on her features as she straightened her back. Standing a few feet away from her, Will seemed to be quite amused by her reaction and she realized only then that she was tricked. Her shoulders fall in annoyance and Will turned towards the glass panel beyond which Shuri and T'Challa was supposed to be standing.

"Let's call it day" he said with that usually present glee in his voice.

The holographic medium started to disperse around them, handing the chamber over to its original appearance. When Will turned back to Carol, her hands were on her hips and condemnation had been palpable on her features. Still, his smile remained steady, taking up that particular mildness which seemed to be reserved exclusively for her. Carol felt herself soften under his gaze and even before she could register that, her arms dropped next to her sides and her feet moved forward. Will's motionless posture, even his gaze sinking into hers had been so patient and welcoming that only Carol could tell the 6 weeks of waiting behind them. She could, because she felt that too.

"Ahem" Carol was dragged back to reality by the audibly bored voice of Shuri "You made a promise, woman"

Carol's face fall and she tried to look at Will as apologetically as she could.

"I got my communicator wrecked" she sighed, holding up her bare arm where it was previouly located "She only let me in if I tried her prototypes right away"

Will nodded.

"Just go"

* * *

Will had been so occupied with the blueprints sprawled out on the table in front of him that only realized Carol's presence when her arms got crossed along his chest from behind. Laying her head on his broad shoulder blade, the blonde tightened her hold around her ex co-pilot's front. By then, Will's eyes raked the diagrams with flippancy and soon, a hardly audible, muffled chuckle found its way through his nostrils. His arms propping against the table in previous inspection now carefully moved and he reached up with one hand to loosely hang his fingers on Carol's clasped hands.

"You ate the last piece of cheesecake again, didn't you?" he asked light-heartedly.

Unexpected the accusation was, Carol's smile grew even wider.

"I'm not attached to you because of how excellent cheesecake you bake..."

Will slightly moved his upper body to tuck her under his left arm while Carol's brows puckered in a mischievous frown.

"Not only because of that, at least"

The look in her eyes reflected playful mockery, the kind Will regarded as her signature feature. Turning towards her wholly, he let his hand sink and make a halt on her side. His mild, never-ceasing smile only intensified his gaze which quickly became lingering once meeting Carol's. Even if she knew she currently had been a sight taken in, Carol didn't bother to close the little gap between the two of them.

"I went quite hard with you in the training room..." she started, her hands laid flat on his chest in a placatory manner "...so if you're done with staring at those stimulus-proof papers, I'd be more than welcome to present you with a softer side of mine"

By the end of the sentence, there was a well-distinguishable glint in her eyes, a glint which involved everything gentle and wistful built up in the past 6 weeks. Its sheer amount, fortified by the warmness Will's whole being emitted, threathened to engulf Carol in any moment, thus, she consciously had to keep herself under check.

'Like a teenager with hormonal problems' flickered through her mind which, in any other moment would have been annoying. Will noticed the slight quiver in her smile and how she bit her lower lip to cover it, so he decided to break the impasse by leaning in and placing his mouth on hers. As soon as their lips caressed against each other, a spark set off and ignited within Carol's system, urging her hand to shot up and grab the back of Will's head, pulling him in a real kiss. Without hesitation, their tongues started battling each other while Carol's hand kept tangling in his hair and the other one got hold of a fistful of his shirt. Breathing suddenly became a difficult task for both of them, thus, their tensing against each other was escorted by sharp intakes of air. His palm starting to explore the small of Carol's back made Will realize he's about to cross a boundary beyond which sensible thoughts are immediately overruled and any further actions just wouldn't fit into the conventions of a laboratory. He had to make a conscious effort to break the line with short kisses and after their bodies ceased to tense against each other that hard, he gently parted his lips from Carol's. When opening his eyes, Will was sure he was seeing the same sparks reflecting in her gaze he must also had. The slight blush on Carol's cheeks broadened as a wide smile spread through them and Will couldn't help but mirror the exact same expression. He desired every bit of that woman from the bottom of her soul to the tip of her hair.

"You just save the rest for later, we've got a job to do"

Their glances turned towards the doorway from where the nonchalant voice of Nick Fury came.

"I entered Earth's atmosphere like what? Forty minutes ago and you already signed me up for a mission?"

"Let's call it a compulsory thing. That time was enough for NASA to blow up your unannounced arrival. You just made Houston shit their pants in fear of a newer alien threat"

The sardonic smirk on Carol's face couldn't be wiped off.

"You're coming with me now" said the director, turning his back towards his protegee "It's the goddamn president of America on the other end of the line demanding your personal report"

As an apology, Carol's lips slightly pressed together as she exchanged glances with Will and set off after Fury.

* * *

'It' s going to be only a report, he said. It's going to be brief, he said' thought Carol grumpily while strolling through the part of the Wakandan compound where Will's room was located. She actually ended up drawing an intergalactic map about the planets she has already visited and species she's got acquinted with throughout her journeys. It had been a lot of fuss to which the president's ever-changing but mostly pale complexion only added. This is why she liked operating on her own: no boss to adapt to, no particular method to apply.

By now, the wide glass panels on her right displayed nothing but the darkness of the night from which only a few spots of guard fires could be made out here and there. When Carol reached the door, she let herself in without knocking. A friendly half-light welcomed her escorted by complete silence. In lack of a better thought, she headed towards the bedroom but reaching it, she had to turn down the sound of her steps as found Will in a half-sitting position on the bed, seemingly already asleep. His head was tilted against the wall and a book laid sprawled on his lap, however, it was his black-framed glasses which caught Carol's attention right away. Her lips automatically curved into a smile, still, a pinch of remorse tugged at her heart at the same time. She wasn't aware he had glasses. It could be another painful reminder how little time they actually spend together but she quickly suppressed that thought. After all, Will has been significantly more occupied with the theoretical function of machines since he's in Wakanda. He probably delved into Shuri's drafts so much that even needed a pair of glasses. If that explanation didn't soothe her, well, then the shower she took certainly did. She only realized how stiff her muscles had been from the long flight home when warm water washed over them. She found her shower gel among other bathroom supplies Will probably used every day. Her clothes was also in that drawer she remembered putting them previously, anyway, she was sure she didn't fold them this neatly. After putting on shorts and a simple red shirt, she strolled up to her dozing co-pilot. The smile from her face just wouldn't cease as she leant in and imperceptibly removed the book from his lap. Then her fingers got a gentle hold of his glasses and started to lift them really slowly. It had already been halfway off when Will's eyelids lightly fluttered and after a second or two, his dazed eyes opened up to unsurely meet Carol's. When her presence dawned on him with a little delay, he tried his best to make his exhausted body react.

"Carol..." came a muffled sound from behind his languid lips and he was about to lean forward in his half-sitting position when Carol's free hand, firm and gentle, stopped him by the chest. After quickly putting down his glasses on the nightstand, she climbed over him to get to the other side of the bed, pulling him with herself with which Will dazedly went along. As his arms finally wrapped around her, Carol nestled herself into his embrace, pressing her head under his chin. The way their bodies adjusted to each other felt as natural as if they had always been meant to be this close. Carol's right hand found its way under Will's arm and got a hold of his shoulder from behind. Her face nuzzled to his shirt where it covered his collarbone and she inhaled deeply: Will had the scent of spring and wet soil, just as she remembered. Carol closed her eyes and let his familiar warmness seep into her skin and fill her whole being. Even though her head had already been pleasantly heavy, she could still register Will's lips lingering on the top of her hair for long seconds. It was home again, indeed.


End file.
